Vista - Windows Vista ultimate x64 Search engine issues - Search fails to index

I've got an apparently "broken" search installation. So that I can skip
through the normal "click the folder you want to index" type of answers,
it's way beyond that. Let me give some background first. This is a new
installation of Vista x64 Ultimate on this machine. I just installed it a
little over a week ago after I got a blue screen of death that wouldn't
allow any type of system restore, etc on the prior install. My prior
installation on that machine was a Vista Ultimate x32 bit. The prior
installation had the OS on the C: drive and I had moved "My Documents" out
of a Windows XP onto the D: drive (D:\My DOcuments). In that prior
installation, I left all Music, Videos, documents etc. under the original
layout and just pointed the Vista "music", "documents", etc folders to the
sub folders. I had no problem indexing on my prior version. I have a Vista
64 bit Ultimate at work as well and IT has no problem indexing even under
the default locations.

On the NEW installation I just did, I decided to put everything on my C:\
drive and leave everything as default. I created the machine under a local
user (an administrator acct) and then after all the security patches
completed, and I had applied service pack 2, I joined it to my Small
Business Server 2003 network at home (different user, but also an
admistrator both on the domain and on the local machine). I moved all of my
original documents from the original D:\ drive into the Vista Users folder
for my main network logon (Music, documents, videos, etc).

Problem: This machine *cannot* see the Users's directory through windows
explorer. It does, sort of, see my local logon profile directories, by that
I mean see user TMontague and Documents, Videos, etc thorugh the start
menu -- but, if I right click and do "explore", no folder for Users shows
up.

However, using a command window, I do see a C:\Users folder with 3 other
folder profiles within. If I go to Windows Explorer and choose the View menu
and show all files, and also show hidden system files, *then* I see users
show up. That behavior is NOT the same as my work 64 bit machine. On my work
machine I do not have to show hidden system files just to see the other user
profiles. Remember, I am a full administrator with my logon and I have full
control of all files and folders.

And this strange hidden C:\USERS folder behavior seems to be impacting
search because Search/indexing options sees the users folder (it's there in
the search window, and it says exclude default) but there is nothing
indexed. Indexing completes at about 1200 items -- it found my outlook
folders and my onenote offline folders and those seem to have indexed, but
nothing comes up from within my normal documents, music, or video folders
where all my index items should reside. If I do a search for a Word
document that's within my documents folder, nothing. If I navigate to my
documents folder and choose search non-indexed locations, then it comes up
by doucment name. I've even moved the indexing store to a different
location and done a full rebuild but once again, it only finds about 1200
items when it should be finding about 50,000 items.

If I go to indexing options where I could click the USERS folder there -- it
doesn't behave as at my work machine. On my work machine, if I click USERS
in the lower pane, on the top part of the panel I am presented as list of
users profiles I can chose to index and search. On the Vista x64 machine I
am dealing with at home, nothing appears. Nothing at all.

So I believe that the two issues of not being able to see other users
profiles on a right click EXPLORE on the start bar is tied into why the
Search also can't find it. I've tried doing a full reset of all search
routines to the orignal default to no avail. Also, I have no security policy
that would exclude this at my domain level. Also, I have the Windows7 RC 64
bit ultimate on my laptop also joined to the same domain and it has no
issues with indexing the user folders either.

Anyone have any suggestions? Is there some registry key that might have
gotten damaged?

Todd

On Thu, 18 Jun 2009 09:54:42 -0500, "cprTodd" <Todd@xxxxxx>
wrote:
1. Make sure the folders are not really hidden
2. Dump that assinine Vista search indexing and well as the useless
Vista search interface. Install Agent Ransack. All better.

Thanks for the info Bob. See the post I submitted back about the time you
did. It did have to do with somehow the folders getting hidden. After
unhiding it with a command and then applying indexing to the C:\users
folder, it seems to be working.

Was not aware of Agent Ransack. Will take a look.

Todd.


"+Bob+" <nomailplease@xxxxxx> wrote in message
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